Front-wheel drive has been part of the classic hot-hatch formula since the genre was ignited in the 1970s. The layout would dominate any all-time-greats list for the category, featuring the likes of the Peugeot 205 GTI, Renault Megane RS, and of course Volkswagen Golf GTI (Marks III and IV excepted!).
Yet, there have long been exceptions, of course...

2017 is almost over. It's time for Christmas parties, sunshine and rose-tinted reflection on the year gone by. But here at CarAdvice, we aren't taking our foot off the pedal just yet – instead, we're taking the chance to look back at your favourite comparisons from this year.
5. Ford Ranger XLT v Volkswagen Amarok V6 Highline
"The space between working ute and family SUV is getting greyer...

A growing majority of tradies and delivery drivers are choosing automatic transmissions for their vans, in a bid to give their left feet a rest in the daily grind of gridlock.
The majority of these vans sold are the fleet-favoured (but ordinary to drive) Toyota HiAce and the evergreen Hyundai iLoad, but here we're looking at the next rung down...

One of the Australian car market's great mysteries is why Ford Australia has been so bad at convincing people to buy its Escape mid-sized SUV. Or, for that matter, its Kuga predecessor.
Despite being a relatively well-rounded offering, Ford's market share at the time of writing was/is just three per cent, miles behind the Mazda CX-5 (15...

For all the hoo-ha about booming sales of SUVs, the so-called 'small car' segment remains the market's most popular, still accounting for almost 20 per cent of all new vehicles sold in Australia.
Of this, the majority are hatchbacks instead of three-box sedans, which draw people in based on their improved practicality and generally less conservative design approaches...

At the end of Part One of our Ford Mustang GT Fastback v Holden Commodore SS V Redline comparison – the Road Test – the 5.0-litre ‘Yank Tank’ was lagging a little behind the 6.2-litre Aussie brute. But things were most definitely still close.
Now it's time to sort the men from the boys, and find out which of our two sub-$60k rear-wheel-drive, V8-powered muscle cars should rightfully be crowned the victor: the Ford or the Holden...

What the hell? Why would you put a two-door Ford Mustang up against a soon-to-be-departed four-door Holden Commodore? Well, when there's only 2kW and $2500 between them, why wouldn’t we...?
Late last month we got the chance to twin-test our resident long-term 2017 Ford Mustang GT Fastback against the ageing – yet decidedly still entertaining – 2017 Nissan 370Z Coupe...

The Hyundai Tucson is Australia's second most popular SUV behind the Mazda CX-5, ergo one of the market's top-selling vehicles full stop.
By contrast, the newly renamed Ford Escape (nee Kuga) is a perennial underachiever, highly regarded critically but comparatively ignored by buyers.
We want to investigate whether this discrepancy is justified...

This really is the battle of the big guns – the most expensive versions of the Ford Ranger and Toyota HiLux, fighting for the title of the sportiest lifestyle ute.
They’re both more popular than any SUV on the market, with buyers choosing these high-riding, five-seat vehicles to get around even if they don’t use the tray for its intended purpose...

It's a good problem to have. You want to buy a new sports car, but you want more poke than either a Mazda MX-5 or Subaru BRZ/Toyota 86 can offer. It can't be front-wheel drive, and your budget rules out more expensive Euros from the likes of Audi, BMW, or Mercedes-Benz...